DIGITAL.NEOSKOSMOS.COM THE WEEKEND NEOS KOSMOS | SATURDAY 8 APRIL 2017 27 SPORT that's where as a referee you need to keep talking to yourself and say ok, you've missed it. Sharpen up. Don't make it up, don't try and equalise the free-kick tally." A common spectacle at all levels of the game these days is the sight of the referee stopping the game to come over to the bench to have discussions with bench that's criticising the ref. Milas agrees there are coaches and clubs who deliberately try and pressure the referee by accusing them of giving the other side too many frees or their own side insufficient frees. He sees it often with clubs targeting younger referees in particular. "So many clubs will try and berate you screaming and yelling. The second you hear that, we call that a 'headache'. You have to get rid of the headache." "It's like a cancer, it will start from the bench and spread through the team… So if you can quell the coach... we ask the linesman closest to the coach ‘Ask him to settle down, tell him what's going to happen.' In my case it's, 'If Hary comes across you're gone’. We give them three strikes and they're out." PHOTO: VICSPORT watching." What's rewarding for Milas is to go on to a park, referee a good game, and try and make as few mistakes as possible, which he admits is not always possible. "You know when a referee has missed something and that's when people in the grandstand have all yelled and screamed and you think, "What have I missed?" And when you look at your assistant ref and they're shrugging their shoulders and you're looking at yourself and coaches are yelling and screaming, and you know what? I have just missed something and I have no idea what it is… and that happens. And you try not to make it up and not to even up the score by awarding a cheap free kick as most people think we do: 'Hary that was a payback'... It's not. And Milas has seen numerous changes to the refereeing profession over the course of his career. "Education and training of referees, the fitness of referees has changed exponentially. If you're not fit players know it. Ninety eight per cent of them are young fellas that can keep up with play. On average we cover 9-12 km per game. You make a decision at the 90th minute, that's when most penalites come, because all the players are tired, lethargic and have run out of legs. The ref needs to be in that box up with play for that key decision. "Laws of Game knowledge, the way the players communicate and the relationships between clubs and refs have changed as well. We have a lot of meetings with clubs so they understand how we think as well." When asked what advice he would give to his younger self when he was starting out as a referee, Milas says, "Be true to yourself. Don't second guess yourself. Make a decision even if it's wrong or right, because people don't know. They don't know the rules of the game. They've seen something, but more often than not, they don't know what they've just seen. You need to make the decision by taking a snapshot in your brain and once you've made it, just stick to it. They want a decision, rightly or wrongly, and you are the only person who's qualified and in the best position to make it." Postecoglou to return to club football after Socceroos World Cup campaign It's been a busy social week for Socceroos boss Ange Postecoglou. Last night the coach revisited his roots when he was special guest at his former club South Melbourne FC's jersey night held at the newly constructed Lakeside social club. The event followed a gala dinner in Sydney on Wednesday night when one of the talking points was Ange's future career as a coach. During a public forum at the Australian Football Institute event hosted by football media personality Les Murray, Postecoglou indicated that after the World Cup in 2018 it would be time to move on from his position as Socceroos boss. The end of the Russia 2018 World Cup will mark the end of Postecoglou's five-year contract as coach of the Socceroos, an appointment he took up in PHOTO: AAP /LUKAS COCH 2013 replacing then-coach Holger Osieck. Since then, the 51-year-old has coached the Socceroos in 36 games for 17 wins, 12 losses, and seven draws, with the highlight being the 2015 AFC Asian Cup win in Australia. Eight of those losses came in 2014 and included matches to higher-ranked opponents in preparation for and during the 2014 World Cup finals. This year the Socceroos will play another seven matches (at least) all bar one of which are in competition. If the team makes it to the World Cup finals next year and through to the knockout stages, Postecoglou will approach the 50-game milestone as a Socceroos coach, and presumably Postecoglous' stocks as a coach would soar. He has commented in the past that when he completes his tenure as the Socceroos boss he would like to return to club coaching abroad. Postecoglou has previously coached at club level in Greece in 2008 with Panachaiki, but would most likely receive offers from bigger clubs if the Socceroos perform well over the next 15 months. FFA delays congress expansion after failing to reach agreement GEORGE STOGIANNOU The FFA has announced a delay in the expansion of its congress after its own preferred model of an expanded congress failed to garner the necessary support to pass by the initial deadline of 31 March. The congress has the power to elect the FFA's independent board and to change the constitution, and FFA has been under pressure from FIFA and the AFC to expand its current congress of 10 votes to incorporate greater representation of various stakeholders in the game in this country. The current congress of 10 votes is comprised of nine votes from the member federations and one vote from the A-League clubs. The FFA board doesn't have a vote. Neos Kosmos wishes to publish a correction and apology for an incorrect statement published in Saturday's 1 April edition, under the heading "FFV Elects Three Female Board Members." The FFA's preferred model of an expanded congress was for 13 votes comprised of nine from the member federations, three from the A-League clubs and one from the Professional Footballers Association (PFA). This model failed to get the 75 per cent agreement necessary to pass at an EGM. It has been reported on The World Game website that the A-League clubs wanted a 16-vote congress with nine votes for the member federations, five votes for the ALeague clubs and two votes for the PFA. Interestingly, no mention of the newly formed NPL club association (Association of Australian Football Clubs - AAFC) was included in the FFA's preferred model or the model proposed by the A-League clubs. AAFC chair- At the FFV Annual General Meeting on Monday 27 March 2017, the 28 members of the FFV voted for four directors, from six candidates. The successful board directors are: Antonella Care Ionnas for four years (re- man Tom Kalas told Neos Kosmos, "We're disappointed with the FFA delaying the congress meeting as there are many issues to work through and then to agree upon necessary changes that are needed to improve the football ecosystem in Australia." When asked how confident he was that the AAFC would eventually be included in FFA's expanded congress, Kalas replied, "FIFA has contacted the FFA and 'requested that the AAFC needs to be anchored in the congress as a key stakeholder.' Despite the delay I feel in time they will see the benefit of our inclusion." Speaking on the FFA website, FFA chairman Steven Lowy said "FFA wants to see an expanded congress for Australia that reflects the elected), Hanife Ymer for four years, Sezar Jakupi for four years (re-elected) and Reiko Okazaki for two years. Still serving another two years are the President Kimon Taliadoros and Nicholas Tsiaras. way the game is evolving in this country but also safeguards the significant progress made through the reforms of 12 years ago. "We have kept FIFA and AFC briefed on progress to date and they understand that the current congress members and other stakeholders need more time to consider these matters. "We will continue to facilitate the dialogue to push for a resolution of these discussions but all stakeholders recognise that the issues require careful examination on a number of levels. Our next annual congress meeting is due in November and we have agreed with FIFA and AFC to find a resolution with our stakeholders and to ensure there is an expanded FFA congress at our AGM in November." Contrary to the erroneous statement which appeared in last week's edition, Ken Steel is not a director of the FFV Board. Apologies for any confusion arising from last week's story.